If Rich CEOs Are Outsiders, McCain Is One Too: Margaret Carlson

Aug. 26 (Bloomberg) -- As the noted political pundit John
Lennon put it, “Your inside is out and your outside is in.”

As this primary season ends, there’s still no telling
whether it’s the year of the insider or the outsider, or, for
that matter, which candidates fall into which category.

Some insiders have lost big, especially Senators Bob
Bennett in Utah and Arlen Specter in Pennsylvania.

At the same time, some insiders have won big. In Missouri,
onetime House Republican Whip Roy Blunt won his party’s
nomination for Senate, turning back a challenge from Tea Party
activist and quail farmer Chuck Purgason. In Kansas,
Representative Jerry Moran captured the Republican nomination
for Senate over Representative Todd Tiahrt, who enjoyed the
support of Sarah Palin and Sean Hannity.

Corporate titans who made millions of dollars inside the
system have had some success painting themselves as outsiders --
at least among Republican primary voters.

Fraud Settlement

Ditto for Florida’s Rick Scott, founder of Columbia/HCA
HealthCare Corp., who spent almost $40 million to win the
Republican nomination for governor, upsetting state Attorney
General Bill McCollum. One of the less populist items on Scott’s
resume is the $1.5 billion in fraud-settlement payments made by
his companies.

The rich-outsider routine didn’t work as well for a
Democrat, billionaire real-estate investor Jeff Greene, who lost
the Florida Senate primary to Representative Kendrick Meek. Many
in the Democratic establishment were quietly hoping that a
Greene victory would free them to support Charlie Crist, the
Republican governor turned independent Senate candidate, against
Tea Party hero and Republican nominee Marco Rubio.

So does Greene’s loss offer insight into insiders and
outsiders this year? Probably not. It might simply mean that
rich party boys can’t win: Greene is famous for what a former
employee described as non-stop happy hour on his yacht featuring
“sex, drugs and techno music.”

Quayle’s Son

But wait! Another candidate who is no stranger to parties,
one with slim credentials and deep establishment roots, won.

In a race for an open Arizona House seat, Ben Quayle, son
of poor speller and former Vice President Dan Quayle, emerged
atop a 10-person Republican primary field, helped by his name
even as he was hobbled by being exposed as a former contributor
to DirtyScottsdale.com, a website for hard-core revelers in the
tony Phoenix suburb. Short of a family of his own, Quayle made
up one for a campaign mailing, passing off two young nieces as
daughters.

What makes politics so fascinating is it remains a story
not just of seismic trends but of single individuals.

John McCain underwent a massive makeover to beat back his
first serious primary challenge in years, from former
Representative J.D. Hayworth. McCain jettisoned even the
“maverick” label he wore proudly for so long, arguing,
comically, that he never really considered himself one.

Rough Rider

He stripped the bark off his opponent, going negative early
and often, turning Hayworth into the incumbent by linking him,
correctly, to lobbyist-felon Jack Abramoff. While Hayworth, a
radio broadcaster, talked the smooth talk of the politician, the
newly anti-establishment McCain ditched the Teddy Roosevelt
reformer politics but kept the Rough Rider costume, doing
everything to look tough but pack heat and charge up Camelback
Mountain.

McCain’s triumph added to Palin’s win column. She’s
batting .667 in her endorsements of both Tea Party and
establishment candidates.

She might chalk up another win in her home state of Alaska,
where her protege, Joe Miller, holds a surprising lead over
incumbent Senator Lisa Murkowski. A “miracle on ice,” Palin
labeled it via Twitter. The outcome won’t be final until the
absentee ballots are tallied.

On the extensive Palin family-feud list, the Murkowskis
rank second only to Levi Johnston’s clan. Lisa got her Senate
seat when her father, Frank, left it to become governor and then
appointed her to it. Dear Old Dad’s career was cut short by
Palin, who challenged him in a primary in 2006, setting the
stage for her swift and improbable ascent to the vice
presidential nomination in 2008.

‘Own Self-Interest’

On Tuesday, Murkowski said of Palin, “I think she’s out
for her own self-interest. I don’t think she’s out for Alaska’s
interest.”

(Margaret Carlson, author of “Anyone Can Grow Up: How
George Bush and I Made It to the White House” and former White
House correspondent for Time magazine, is a Bloomberg News
columnist. The opinions expressed are her own.)